1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to pumps such as, for example, centrifugal pumps of the slurry processing type, and specifically relates to a method for handling components of the pump to facilitate repair of pumps in a more efficient and cost-effective manner.
2. Description of Related Art
Centrifugal slurry pumps are used in a large variety of industrial processes, especially in the grinding and grading stage of ore during mineral processing. Ore slurries are highly abrasive causing great wear and tear to those parts of the pump in contact with the slurry, which requires slurry pumps to undergo frequent servicing.
In the processing of copper ore, a slurry pump typically processes approximately 2,000 tonnes of ore per hour, including about 20 tonnes of copper content. Depending on the slurry pump size and weight, which may range from 12 to 30 tonnes, replacement of a worn pump or its parts takes from eight to sixteen hours, and each replacement therefore causes a production loss of at least 150 to 300 tonnes of copper.
For that reason there have been advances in the design and development of slurry pumps to extend the pump operating time between services. One of the typical solutions is to protect the pump casing with metallic or elastomeric sacrificial internal liners. However, in the state of the art, there is no technical solution to reduce the period of time it takes to change out a slurry pump, this being the technical problem that the present invention addresses.